I agree, congratulations for the document! On 17 November 2012 14:00, <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > Hello everyone, > > Since today is the last day for public comment on the proposed new > cybercafe constituency and nothing has been sent in, I took the liberty of > composing something brief that I hope members can approve. I've done so as > many members have expressed firm opinions about this issue, and it is > important that NCSG sends in a comment, especially since the group is > applying to join NCSG. > > The proposed comment follow; if there is no objection by the end of the > day, I propose to file it on behalf of NCSG. Thanks everyone! > > "The Non-Commercial Stakeholder Group (NCSG) is pleased to see that > there is increased interest from developing regions in ICANN participation. > Having long been the most-diverse (geographically and ethnically) > stakeholder group within not just the GNSO but ICANN as well, we have > always made outreach, accessibility and engagement part of our mission and > have as a result welcomed numerous new individual and organizational > members from across the globe into our membership, including through the > GNSO's newest constituency, the Not for Profit Operational Concerns (NPOC) > constituency. > > There is consensus in the NCSG - from both NPOC and Non-Commerciaul > Users Constituency (NCUC) members - that the new CCAOI application for > constituency status belongs not in the NCSG but in the Commercial > Stakeholders Group (CSG). We have carefully reviewed all the documents and > information provided in the CCAOI's application, and believe that it is a > commercial organization whose operations do not fit within NCSG's formal > charter or objectives. > > The CCAOI's stated reason for applying to join NCSG is that it is a > non-profit organization which among its activities promotes public interest > goals of education and access. While non-profit organizations are members > of NCSG's NPOC constituency, NPOC members must first and continue to be > NCSG members as well, i.e., remain resolutely non-commercial in their > focus. The fact that individual cybercafes within the wider CCAOI > organization may not charge fees to their users does not by itself make > either these cybercafes or the CCAOI itself a non-commercial organization. > Rather, we note from its application that its members include also > "e-commerce service providers", "Internet solution providers" and > entrepreneurs, and its plans include the use of a mobile payment platform > to alleviate the problem of low credit card usage and cash safety. > > We therefore believe that the proper place within the current GNSO > framework for CCAOI is the CSG. The fact that the CSG's rigid constituency > structures may mean that CCAOI could potentially belong to either the > Internet Service Providers (ISP) constituency or the Business Constituency > (BC), or that either of these groups may need to modify its charter to > allow a commercial organization of CCAOI's nature to apply, is not NCSG' > concern or issue. Similarly, if the GNSO's own structure requires change in > order to accommodate a diverse organization such as CCAOI, it is not a > solution to just put them in the NCSG simply because we are the most > flexible and open GNSO stakeholder group. These limitations are problems > that are neither the fault of CCAOI or NCSG, and should if necessary be > addressed by the GNSO as a whole and perhaps also the ICANN Board's own > Structural Improvements Committee (SIC), who had worked with the fledgling > NCSG to develop a charter that reflected non-commercial values and > interests. > > Should this not be feasible, NCSG believes that those members and > elements of CCAOI that are purely non-commercial could individually join > NCSG. As a representative organization that has clearly commercial sources > of funding and for-profit members, however, CCAOI as it is currently > constituted clearly does not belong within NCSG. > > Respectfully submitted, > > The Non-Commercial Stakeholder Group" > > > > Mary W S Wong > Professor of Law > Director, Franklin Pierce Center for IP > Chair, Graduate IP Programs > UNIVERSITY OF NEW HAMPSHIRE SCHOOL OF LAW > Two White Street > Concord, NH 03301 > USA > Email: [log in to unmask] > Phone: 1-603-513-5143 > Webpage: http://www.law.unh.edu/marywong/index.php > Selected writings available on the Social Science Research Network (SSRN) > at: http://ssrn.com/author=437584 > > >